Type-III Armored Assault Ship
*Type-IV Armored Assault Ship |operators = *Dawn Horizon Corps *Tekkadan Private Military Company *Brewers Pirates Group *Teiwaz *Various Non-Military Civilian Groups |length = 360 meters to 380 meters |power plant = Ahab Reactors |armour = Nanolaminated Armor |mobile weapons = *3-4 x Mobile Suits *10-12 x Mobile Workers |universe = Post Disaster |developed from = *Type-I Armored Assault Ship *Type-II Armored Assault Ship}} The Type-III Armored Assault Ship is like the previous two types of Armored Assault Ship are not really a class of ship but a general common overall name for a series of different ships. This is mainly thanks to the sheer modifications and changes made to many ships of the type. Technology & Combat Characteristics Overall, the Type-III Armored Assault Ships are a slightly larger more robust version of the more common Type-II Armored Assault Ship. Other than that there is no real difference between the two types. Even then like all of the Armored Assault Ships the Type-III ships are a hybrid design of civilian and military design philosophy. They were designed to serve as armed and armored transport ships that could stand up against attacking military ships if required. This was mainly done thanks to the sheer overall chaos that happened after the end of the Calamity Wars. Like much of the other Armored Assault Ships much of the ship's cargo bays are situated in the large 'fin' like aft section while much of the main crew quarters, mess halls, hangar, secondary cargo bays and other such locations are gathered in the front half of the ship. Armaments *'Series/3 Dual Cannon Turrets' :Much of the Type-III Armored Assault Ships sport five of these weapons with four gathered on the side pontoons with dedicated slides that allow the guns traverse towards the fore and aft. The fifth turret is mounted behind the bridge facing aft. This is a pretty common arrangement for many of the Type-III, and Type-II, ships though a few modified ships sport a slightly different arrangement. *'Series/2 Machine Gun Turrets' :The Type-III ships typically sport two Series/2 machine gun turrets often flanking either side of the ship's bridge superstructure. Though this is often changed with the addition of more guns to better defend against attacking mobile suits. Even then on the more civilian use Type-III ships two guns are the standard. *'Mark-51 Torpedo Tubes' :The Type-III Armored Assault Ships differ from the smaller Type-II ships for they carry four torpedo tubes instead of two giving them a better long-range punch. Like all of the Armored Assault Ships torpedo tubes these launchers capable of firing the various Mark-50 series torpedo including typical anti-ship explosive torpedoes, chaff torpedoes, and other varied types of torpedoes Equipment *'Series/1 Wire Anchors' :The Series/1 Wire Anchors is a common stable of Armored Assault Ships everywhere allowing for a variety of purposes including securing the ship to floating pieces of debris, asteroids, and towing other ships. However, they can also be used in a combat situation securing an enemy ship for hostile boarding actions or to prevent it from running away. Even then some general modifications include the removal of these anchors from the ship for a variety of different reasons, including replacing them with fixed heavy anti-ship cannons or the addition of further torpedo tubes. Notable Ships of the Line ;*TIR-0009 Hammerhead :The Hammerhead is the flagship of the Turbines Transport Group an affiliate of the Teiwaz Conglomerate. It is heavily modified from the original design, including the addition of a large frontal-mounted 'Hammerhead' which gives the ship its name. The ship's main engines are also relocated to the sides of this 'Hammerhead' section allowing it sport a slight difference in its handling. The cannons have been replaced with newer, larger Series/4 Guns from the less common Type-IV Armored Assault Ships. The Series/1 Wire Anchors have been removed and somewhat replaced with smaller versions on the aft and frontal arcs which are generally used for towing. ;*TIR-0099 Brassen Jasley :Formerly the flagship of the JPT Trust before they acquired a retired Goshawk-class Cruiser Carrier from Gjallarhorn to replace it. It sported an extended mobile suit hangar capable of carrying twice the amount of mobile suits and an extra pair of Series/2 machine gun turrets. ;*BKP-026 Amber Dawn :The flagship of the Dawn Horizon Pirate Group is the Type-III Armored Assault Ship Amber Dawn and it sports several modifications including a bow-mounted mobile suit hanger and catapult for the ship's mobile suit team. However, other than major modification there is nothing real different from other Type-III ships. ;*''Liberty''-class Armored Assault Ships :Two of the Liberty-class Armored Assault Ships are Type-III ships and are heavily modified to look similar to the Hammerhead. They also include superior weapons, armor, and a larger hangar capable of carrying six mobile suits. Due to link between Mars and Teiwaz, mainly the former Turbines, these ships are modified to resemble the Hammerhead. History The Type-III Armored Assault Ship were first developed in the years following the end of the disastrous Calamity Wars thanks in part to the chaos the erupted throughout the Earth Sphere, Mars Sphere, and the newborn Jovian Sphere. With many pirates and just general thugs running around the spheres Gjallarhorn and the new Economic Blocs needed a way to safely transport cargo between the various spheres without anyone trying to attack the transports to steal the cargo. While some wanted to have Gjallarhorn do their duty in escorting transports, they didn't have the numbers at the time to escort every transport and try to keep the peace in the chaotic Spheres. Therefore, the first tentative designs for the Armored Assault Ship would be introduced as a way to counter the pirate attacks. These new ships would have the armor, the ability to carry a small number of mobile suits and weapons to stand against attacking pirates while still sporting the capability of transporting cargo. Gjallarhorn were at first weary of going through with this but eventually the Economic Blocs managed to push the idea through and the first of these new ships would start production. Since then numerous ships of this class would be produced over the years since the first Armored Assault Ships would be introduced. Over time Armored Assault Ships would become the second most common ship type found through the solar system with many using them from simple transport companies, mercenary groups, and even the pirates which they had once been designed to defend against. Thanks to many different groups using them, and more then a few companies producing them a new classification system was invented to class the various Armored Assault Ships. This would become the Type system now in use today. The Type-III design are the largest of the various Armored Assault Ship types and while the Type-II are more common the larger design is still seen in reasonable numbers across the solar system. Appearances Iron-Blooded Orphans The Type-III Armored Assault Ships are represented by the Hammerhead and the Dawn Horizon Flagship seen in the anime series Iron-Blooded Orphans. From the Ashes In the short stories that make up this story the Type-III are represented by the new Liberty-class ships Liberty and the Freedom formerly members of the Type-III class. The Hammerhead is also mentioned a few times in a few of the stories. Phoenix Rising Like in From the Ashes the Liberty-class are said to be former members of the Type-III class and again the Hammerhead is mentioned a couple times during the story. Also, a few pirate ships featured in the story of the Type-III class while a freelancer transporter uses a Type-III ship for her transport company. Trivia & Notes *The Type-III Armored Assault Ship is an invention of this author who wanted some way to classify the various similar ships seen in the Iron-Blooded Orphans series. The Type-III are the larger type seen mainly by the Hammerhead. *The image used in this article is a screenshot taken from Episode 28 right before the battle starts with the Dawn Horizon Corps. External Links * Category:Warships Category:Transport Category:Armored Assault Ship